Means for balancing and regulating the lift of aircraft



F. H. PAGE.

MEANS FOR BALANCINGAND REGULATING THE LIFT 0F AIRCRAFT. APPLICATION FILED DEC. 6. 1921.

1L Aggmg, Patented July 11,1922,

UNITE STATES FREDERICK HANDLEY PAGE, OF LONDON, ENGLAND,

ASSIGNOR T0 HANDLE-Y PAGE LIMITED, OF LONDON, ENG-LAND.

MEANS FOR BALANCING AND REGULATING THE LIFT OF AIRCRAFT.

Application filed December 6, 1921.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK HANDLEY PAGE, a subject of the'King of Great Britain, residing atvLondon, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means for Balancing and Regulating the Lift of Aircraft, of which the following is a specification.

In order to vary the relative lift of the wings on the port and starboard sides of an aeroplane flying machine to, maintain the lateral stability of the said machine about the axis of flight, or to cause the lift of both wings on opposite sides of said machine to be increased, flaps or ailerons, hereafter termed flaps, are usually provided, being hinged adjacent their forward edges to the rear edges of the wings, and which flaps can be increased in angle orturned downwards as re uired by means operable by the pilot and w ich means are so well known as not to call for description in this specification, and the object of the present invention is'to provide means, as hereafter described and produced by creased.

I have ascertained, as the result of numerous experiments, that by the wing having a slot or slots through the wing structure from the under surface to the upper surface and extending in length transversely to the, line of flight, the lift of such a wing can be increased by admitting air from the under side to the upper side of the Wing surface by way of said slot or slots, and

claimed, by which the effect such hinged flaps is greatly inwhen the wing is flown at large angles of I incidence the ifting effect is considerably lncreased. As a further result of experiments I have found that the openings of the slots on the under surface of the wing struc' ture should-preferably be larger and more forwardly located than the openings on the upper surface.

N ow the present'invention consists in utilizing and adapting the above mentioned method of increasing the lift, to augment the lifting effect produced by wing flaps when the latter are increased in angle 'or receive a downward movement about their 'hinges.

Accordin to the present invention each flap is carried by a pivot pin or equivalent hin member, supported from the rear part f ti; wing, said pivot pin being so located Specification of Letters Patent.

Serial No. 520,420.

opened between the rear edge of said wing and the forward edge of said flap, said slot extending transversely of the line of flight and permitting of the passage of air from the under surface to the upper surface of said wing structure adjacent the forward edge of said flap while when said flap is in its normal position or turned upwards said slot is closed,

The invention will be further described with reference to the accompanying drawings which sufficiently illustrate the rear portion of a win with a hinged fiap coacting therewith, Figs. 1 and 2 showing rcspect1vely the flap in its normal position and the flap turned upwards, while Fig. 3 shows the flap turned downwards, so having the effect of automatic-ally opening the slot between the forward edge of the flap and the rear edge of the wing.

Referring to the drawings, 1 represents the rear portion of an aeroplane wing, 2 representing the rear spar of the wing. The wing flap 3 is hinged or pivoted by means of brackets 3 extending below and engaging a pivot-4, (or hinge member of any sultable' construction), carried by brackets 5, extending rearwards and downwards from the rear spar 2 of the wing 1. The wing structure 1 in front of the forward edge of the flap 3 extends somewhat rearwardly of the wing spar 2.

It will be observed that when the flap 3 is in its normal position, namely continuous in its direction with the after part of the wing as at Fig. 1, or is turnedupward as at Fig. 2, the slot 6, between the forward edge of the flap and the rear portion of the Wing, is closed, while when the flap 3 is turned downwards asat Fig. 3 upon its pivot 4;, the slot 6 is open and permits air to pass from the under surface of the wing to the upper surface above the flap 3.

Since I have found that the opening of the slot 6 should, on the under surface be preferably larger and more forwardly located than the opening on the upper surface, the extension I of the wing 1, rearward of the spar and opposed to the for- Patented July ii, 1922.

ward ed e or nose of the flap 3, is curved rearwar 1y, that is, is concavely curved at 7., from the lower surface at about a point 8, to the upper surface at a more rearward point- 9, so that when the flap 3 is turned downwards as at Fig. 3, the slot 6, produced between the flap 3 and the rear part of the wing, is larger on the lower surface than the opening of the slot on the upper surface, and moreover the opening ofthe slot on the lower surface is more forwardly located than the opening on the upper surface. Moreover the walls of the slot 6 formed by the rear edgeof the wing and the nose of the flap are curved rearwardly.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In laterally balancing or regulating the lift of the wings of aeroplane flying machines; the combination with said wings, of flaps located at the rear edges of said wings, hinge members to support said flaps, and means extending from the structure of said wings to support said hinge members in such position relatively to said wings and said flaps, that a slot is formed between the forward edge of each of said flaps and the rearward edges of said wings when said flaps are turned downwards about their hinges, and said slot is closed when said flaps are in their normal or upturned positions.

' 2. In laterally balancing or regulating the lift of the wings of aeroplane flying ,machines; the combination with said wings, of flaps located at the rear edges of said wings, hinge members to support said flaps, means extending from the structure of said wings to support said hinge members in such position relatively to said -wings and said flaps, that a slot is formed between the forward edge of each of said flaps and the rearward edges of said wings when said flaps are turned downwards about their hinges, and said slot is closed when said flaps are in their normal or upturned positions, and constructing the rearward edges of said wings adjacent the forward edges of said flaps inclined upwardly and rearwardly from the lower surface to the upper surface of said wings to produce slots larger on the under surface than on the upper surface of the structure when said flaps are turned downwards about their hinges.

3. In laterally balancing or regulating the lift of the wings of aeroplane flying machines; the combination with said wings, of flaps located at the rear edges of said wings, hinge members adjacent the lower surface and forward edge of said flaps, means to con-.

nect said hinge members to said flaps, brackets extending downwardly and rearwardly from the rear spars of said wings to support said hinge members in such position relatively to said wings and said flaps that a slot is formed between the forward edge of each of said flaps and the rearward edges of said wings when said flaps are turned downwards about their hinges and said slot is closed when said flaps are in their normal or upturned positions.

4. In laterally balancing or regulating the lift of the wings of aeroplane flying machines; the combination with said wings, of flaps located at the rear edges of said wings, hinge members to support said flaps, means extending from the structure of said wings to support said hinge members in such position relatively to said wings and said flaps, that a slot is formed between the forward edge of each of said flaps and the rearward edges of said wings when said flaps are I turned downwards about their hinges, and said slot is closed when said flaps are in their normal or upturned positions, and constructing the rearward edges of said wings adjacent the forward edges of said fiapsconcavely curved from the lower surface to the upper surface to produce slots having openings larger on the lower surface than on the upper surface and having the walls of said slot comprised by the rear edges of said wings and the forward edges of the flaps curved rearwardly from the under surface to the upper surface.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two witnesses. FREDERICK HANDLEY PAGE. Witnesses:

Tnoivms W. ROGERS, WIL IAM A. MARSHAL 

